Two recent meetings at SLAC brought together experts working on computer hardware and software for LSST – a future telescope that will provide unprecedented views of the sky and may solve some of the biggest mysteries of the universe.

A previous study claiming the discovery of gravitational waves as cosmic inflation’s fingerprint has most likely been over-interpreted, scientists found in a joint analysis between the Planck and BICEP2 experiments.

Plans to build the world’s largest digital camera at SLAC have reached a major milestone, with funding approval for the 3,200-megapixel camera. The camera will be the centerpiece of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which will provide unprecedented details of the universe and help address some of its biggest mysteries.

Abel, associate physics professor at Stanford and at SLAC and acting director of KIPAC, was recognized for the advances he’s made using supercomputers to explore the first billion years of cosmic history.